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Exploring The Great Barrier Reef - Fitzroy Island
Cairns is famous for the Great Barrier Reef where you can snorkel and dive with turtles and sharks. Bonus to this are a range of stunning...
Exploring The Great Barrier Reef - Fitzroy Island
Weeks of working hard have passed by in a blur. We decided we needed to stop the never-ending carousel and do something fun with some of our hard-earned wages and occasional day's off.
Cairns is famous for the Great Barrier Reef where you can snorkel and dive with turtles and sharks. Bonus to this are a range of stunning islands, a short hop from the city by boat.
Fitzroy Island is home to a resort, a restaurant, with beach hire and water-sports too, as well as some relaxed and safe swimming and snorkelling in the warm spring waters.
On the boat ride over we decided places like Fitzroy are why England just kinda sucks, and why people out here are so abundantly fortunate, because they can just jump on a boat and head out to what some would view as an absolute paradise, on the drop of their wide-brimmed hat.
Being able to explore this small exotic gem is one reason why the tropical North of Queensland is definitely worth a longer stay.
We travelled to the island with locally owned Raging Thunder, who offer a range of packages from a basic island transfer to inclusions for snorkelling, lunch and a glass bottom boat tour.
A fun tour with a medium-sized boat, the island didn't feel too overcrowded in the morning, and so we explored the stunning Nudey Beach, where the water is ridiculously clear and inviting.
We snorkelled here briefly but found the better snorkelling to be had was at the more sheltered Welcome Bay where the main hub of activity is.
The water here is stiller, yet the coral beds are still easy to reach, just a few feet from the shoreline.
There is also an awesome floating trampoline in Welcome bay, free to use for Raging Thunder customers throughout the day. You'll find yourself swimming out to it and practising your flips in no time!
The last 2 months have felt great in terms of progressing in our savings goals as well as making new friendships and sampling life in yet another part of Australia, and this was just one aspect of that.
At times our recent busy schedules have made the real beauty and fun of travel feel like a distant memory, and we hoped we could spend this day recuperating from all the crazy-ness, and we did just that.
Thanks for reading!
Hannah and Taran here. We hail from Southern England, where we met online and are now realizing our mutual passion for travel here at Nomad'erHowFar. We discuss Nomadic Living, Simplifying your Life and Long-term Travel, to empower, motivate and inspire our readers. Get to know us here!
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14 Photos That Will Inspire You To Travel
Travel might be a great way to meet new people, grow, discover adventure, and learn about yourself, but primarily, its a feast for the eyes and the soul.
14 Photos That Will Inspire you to Travel
Travel might be a great way to meet new people, grow, discover adventure, and learn about yourself, but primarily, its a feast for the eyes and the soul.
We have brought together some amazing photographers from around the world who have captured it in all its majesty. We hope these photos will awaken your desire to wander and see it all for yourself.
// United States Of America
Vernal Falls in Yosemite National Park in California - a bit of a hike up from the bottom, but definitely worth the effort! - Laurence Norah is the author of Finding the Universe, a travel & photography blog, as well as the Superstar Blogging Photography course, where he shares his photography tips and tricks with the world.
// Australia
Here is a photo we snapped while on Magnetic Island, Australia, during one the the best sunsets we have ever seen! It definitely helped that the scenery around us was so picturesque.
// Russia
"This was taken at the spiritual Shaman Rock on Olkhon Island in the middle of Lake Baikal. Olkhon Island didn't have running water until very recently and most hostels didn't have it installed when I visited, so I spent three days using outdoor squat toilets in -30 degrees Celsius and brushing my teeth with sparkling bottled water. TIP: When walking on the frozen lake, remember to look closely under the ice for fish swimming below you!" Moomads.
// Chile & Argentina
"This photo was taken on top of Paso de Jama, a main road connecting Chile with Argentina. Since we first came to the Andes we have been astonished by their beauty. Although they can look relatively barren, the rock formations are often so colourful that they can take your breath away. The air is extremely clean, so you often get clear blue skies of unbelievable vibrancy and crystal-clear reflections in lagoons." Dare2Go
// Australia
Whitehaven Beach on the east coast of Australia, some of the clearest waters in the world coupled with some of the whitest sand in the world. Its a combination that makes this place the perfect beach.
// Faroe Islands, part of Denmark
"Driving around the Faroe Island is a slow and time consuming matter - not because the roads are bad, but because the landscapes are simply too beautiful to be true, and you'll want to stop around every bend to take a picture. The weather in the Faroes is cold and rainy pretty much year round - as a result, the grass is the greenest we've seen, and there are waterfalls literally everywhere. This is Gásadalur waterfall, next to the village of the same name, and barely 10 km drive from the international airport. It was the first place we visited during our recent trip to the Faroe Islands - it is one of the most photographed locations in the country, spectacular year round and in all kinds of weather." The Crowded Planet
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// Egypt
"This shot is of Khafe Pyramid in Giza - as a history lover seeing the Great Pyramids in Egypt was one of my favourite travel experiences this past year!" Jessica Norah is the writer at Independent Travel Cats, a travel blog focused on couples travel, travel history, and luxury travel.
// The Galapagos Islands
"The Galapagos Islands; where the land is made from fire, the birds can't fly, and the lizards live underwater (some of the time anyway). Nothing here quite makes sense" Lisle Gywnn
// Mexico
"This photo is of the gorgeous Cenote X'Canche which is located just 1.5 miles from the Mayan Ruins of Ek Balam in Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. Visiting this cenote after exploring the ruins makes for a perfect day trip. I absolutely loved swimming in the vibrant turquoise-coloured freshwater with lots of little black catfish. My friends and I were the only ones there which made for such a tranquil and magical atmosphere." Brittany Thiessen.
// Australia
We took this beauty at sunrise on a quiet beach in Cape Hillborough, Australia. We had heard via word-of-mouth that it was a great place to see kangaroos in the wild, and as you can see it truly didn't disappoint!
// Iran
"Roaming through the grassy hills outside Palangan, a mountain village in Iranian Kurdistan. Rippling grasses, blue skies, and fields filled with shockingly red poppies make Kurdistan one of Iran's most charming and colourful regions." Lost With Purpose
// Hungary
"After visiting many cities across Europe, Budapest is without a doubt our favourite city. There is so much to see and do and the history and architecture of the city are interesting to say the least. This is our favourite picture from our time there, looking across over to Pest and Margaret island from Fisherman Bastion." Flashpacking Duo
// Chile
Torres Del Paine national park. This stunningly diverse landscape in Chile's Patagonia region was captured by our good friend Chie.
// Mongolia
"Wild horses roam the Mongolian steppe at sunset, just outside of the capital city of Ulaanbaatar." NOMADasaurus
Need more inspiring?!
Thanks for reading!
Hannah and Taran here. We hail from Southern England, where we met online and are now realizing our mutual passion for travel here at Nomad'erHowFar. We discuss Nomadic Living, Simplifying your Life and Long-term Travel, to empower, motivate and inspire our readers. Get to know us here!
Be social and come follow us across the virtual world!
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How To Capture Epic Photographs
Want to learn how to use the MANUAL mode on a camera and take amazing photographs? This masterclass will teach you how...
How To Capture Epic Photographs
Since setting out on our adventure we have witnessed some wonderful sights, sights that just cried out to be snapped! We travelled for 7 months just taking photos on our GoPro and phones.. But then we forked out and bought ourselves a Canon G16. Its a fairly mid range camera with no external lens, but we did our research and the picture quality this camera can give really speaks for itself:
This was a truly beautiful moment for us, waking up at sunrise and meeting kangaroos on a beach in Australia. And the new camera certainly proved its worth! "But how did you get such a picture" You may ask.. For the above photo I set a ISO-80 and f/2.8 and then chose a fairly quick shutter speed of 1/320.
Okay so some of you may have absolutely no idea what I'm talking about.. These are the things your camera will take care of when you have it set to AUTO mode, and while this will work most of the time, you will find that you can create photographs that are way more epic on MANUAL mode. Okay so lets take a quick course on the values and what they mean, and trust me, they aren't that scary when you get your head around them :P Lets start with the thing that took me the longest to figure out..
The F-Stop Value
The f-stop value refers to the size of the cameras pupil, in many senses it works the same way your eyes pupil does. A low value of f/1.8 will mean that the pupil opens up wide and lets in the most light, and you guessed it.. a high value of say f/8 will reduce the pupils size and let in less light. Below is a little graphic to help you understand:
But this is not the only thing affected by the value.. Low value f numbers will have a lower depth of field, meaning you can take those close up pictures with blurred backgrounds. Similarly high f numbers will produce an image that will have close and distant objects in focus.
So to summarise:
LOW F VALUE (f/1.8 or similar) = MORE LIGHT + MORE BLUR
HIGH F VALUE (f/8 or similar) = LESS LIGHT + LESS BLUR
The ISO Value
ISO numbers are basically a measure of how sensitive the camera is to light, low ISO numbers mean the camera will be less sensitive and high numbers make it more sensitive. This can be very handy when taking pictures at night or inside as it will allow you to keep a fast enough shutter speed to stop there being any blur.
But this added sensitivity comes with a drawback, the higher you set the ISO the less quality you will get in your pictures, generally when taking photos outside you will want to keep the ISO as low as possible as there should be enough natural light to keep the camera happy :] Here is a comparison of two photos but to be fair the low ISO side came out brighter just because the sun was shining straight through the window...
To summarise:
LOW ISO VALUE (ISO-80 or similar) = LESS LIGHT + MORE QUALITY
HIGH ISO VALUE (ISO-3200 or similar) = MORE LIGHT + LESS QUALITY
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And Finally, Shutter Speed
Okay, so finally we have shutter speed, I've saved the easiest till last. Shutter speed refers to how long you want to open the shutter for when you press the capture button. Opening the shutter for a very short amount of time will let in only a tiny amount of light so you will need to turn up the ISO, but you will be able to capture shots of fast moving objects without blur. Our Canon G16's quickest capture setting is 1/4000 of a second.. which is kind of ridiculous for most photography unless maybe your trying to capture a speeding bullet or something :P
On the other hand opening the shutter for longer will (you guessed it!) allow more light in. This can be very handy if you taking pictures in a dark room or at night, but you will need a tripod to keep your camera very still or the image will be blurry. This photo below was taken with the shutter open for 30 seconds in a area of low light pollution:
And so to summarise:
LOW SHUTTER SPEED (1/400 or similar) = LESS LIGHT + MOVING OBJECTS WONT BLUR
HIGH SHUTTER SPEED (30 seconds or similar) = MORE LIGHT + MOVING OBJECTS WILL BLUR
Now lets move onto the less technical skills, starting with: Focus
Sometimes there will be something that just stands out to you in the foreground of a scene, the best way to bring attention to it is to shift the focus to it! If you get a little bit further away from the object and then zoom on it you can get a good balance on the background being blurred.
Framing And Foreground Objects
A natural frame for your picture can draw your viewers eye to what you wanted them to see in the picture, as you can see above I have used part of a tree as a frame here and it doesn't overpower the image. Also the addition of a figure in the water completes a triangle of interest between the big leaf, the sun breaking through the clouds and the figure, this keeps the viewer looking for longer.
Combining Those Skills!
The above photograph was taken just after a sunset at the waters edge, I set the f value to f/8 so that the clouds and the tree where in focus. The ISO value was turned all the way down to ISO-80 to let in the least amount of light, as I was aiming at the area that the sun was still lighting up. I then let the shutter open for 15 seconds, which was needed to let some light in with the other settings, but it also gave the water an awesome effect that makes it look like mist!
Experiment!
Capturing lightning can be a tiresome thing to do.. It includes a lot of waiting around and hoping you have the camera pointing in the right direction! The picture above was taken on our GoPro silver, this was good because the wide angle lens makes it much easier to get a whole lightning bolt in the frame.
I found the easiest method was to set up the camera with the lowest settings possible on the GoPro, ISO-100 and that's all you get to change haha! Then mount it on a tripod, point it in the general direction of the lightning and turn on the time-lapse mode with the shutter speed set to 20 seconds. This way you don't have to keep pressing the capture button, you can leave it doing its thing for 30 minutes and then take a look at the results!
The Milky Way
Photographing the stars is one of my favourite things to do! To capture something like this you will need to set up your camera on a tripod preferably, I then used the settings ISO-800, f/1.8 and took a 15 second exposure. You will probably want to open the photo up in an editing program to do a few touch ups to bring the colour out and adjust the contrast (this ain't cheating by the way, no one ever gets pro Milky Way shots straight off the camera).
The above photo was compiled on the camera! The Canon G16 has a feature which does all the technical stuff for you, And gives great star trail results :P But there are some great free applications out there that will basically do the same! StarTrails.de is one example.
Any Questions? Just Ask In The Comments..
Thanks for taking this short master-class! There are a few links to the cameras and tools I used to get these photos and if you click these to purchase anything, you will be helping to keep our site running at no extra cost to you :D
Now check out our first year of travel in 12 stunning photographs.
Thanks for reading!
Taran here, owner of Nomad'er How Far. I'm fond of psychedelic rock, photography & videography, anything to do with space and I'm also partial to the odd gaming session. Oh and I love to travel :P Get to know me here!
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1 Year In Oz - Photography
Will these 12 reasons be enough to get you on a plane to Australia?!
1 Year In Oz - Photo Book ☀
So its been 12 whole months since we left the UK, the time really hasn't gone fast at all.. In fact its gone quite slow!! This past year has felt like a lifetime in Australia, but that's what happens when you change your routine all the time. We have had 4 different jobs in that time and are just about to start new ones, travelled to beautiful islands, partook in a cannabis festival, took shelter for two days while a massive storm destroyed the camp ground we were staying at, hitch hiked up the east coast, watched whales migrate to warmer seas, spent Christmas on a isolated desert island, jumped out of a plane and so much more!!
So here we are, our 12 most favourite snaps that capture the journey we have been on so far! Enjoy!
1 - Port Stephens, a small area home to the largest sand dune system in Australia! We really did feel like we had just been dropped off in the middle of a desert..
2 - Crystal Falls near the old fashioned town of Bellingen, we went on a trek into the local rainforest filled with views like this!
3 - We worked for a month at a beach resort in a small beach town called Bargara, the views of the milky way were spectacular! Another shot taken on a bloomin GoPro!!
4 - Second year visa farm work in Australia ain't all bad, we landed WWOOFing positions on a small macadamia farm in the middle of know where. This photo was taken during one of the forest burns we took part in (That was Hannah's 4x4)
5 - The storms over our farm house! We spent hours just sitting out on the balcony watching the lightning and listening to the thunder. We also had to run out into and get wet :P
6 - This haunting photo was taken just after sunset on our GoPro in the town of 1770. You can even see a few stars starting to shine in the sky!
7 - After working on the farm we headed to Fraser Island to do some paid work at a camp ground. Over the course of the 2 months we spent there we spotted so much wildlife, this is one of the native Dingos patrolling the beach.
8 - This is Fraser Islands west coast, none of the tours go to this side of the island, which made it such a peaceful experience. Fraser truly is a beautiful place!
9 - The Whitsunday Islands, home to the famous Whitehaven Beach. We got dropped of by a small boat and spent 2 nights camping on the island, during the day the beach was full of day trippers, but in the evening we were the only people on the island..
10 - Sunset on Whitehaven beach, an empty beach and a warm beer (next time we will take a cool box) perfection! We had so much fun here that we would recommend it to anyone travelling in Oz.
11 - Cape Hillsborough, a small area near Airlie Beach. If you go to the beach in the early hours of the morning just as the sun is rising, you will be greeted by a group of kangaroos and wallabies! They all seem to love the attention and pose for the camera like professionals.
12 - Finally we have Noosa, our current base. An up and coming beach town with a beautiful river system running around it (also great views of the mountains as you can see above).
The year ahead will be quite different, as we head up to the rainforest's of Cairns, then into the dusty red outback. We can't wait to see the real and raw Australia!
Thanks for joining us on this epic adventure!! ✌
Cheers for reading!
Hannah and Taran here. We hail from Southern England, where we met online and are now realizing our mutual passion for travel here at NomaderHowFar. We discuss Nomadic Living, Simplifying your Life and Long-term Travel, to empower, motivate and inspire our readers. Get to know us here!
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Fraser Island - 13 Must See/Do's
Planning on visiting Fraser Island? Here's all the info you need plus some insider tips on secret spots to explore!
Fraser Island - 13 Must See/Do's ☠
Our home and place of work for 2 months, we managed to explore in great detail the surrounding area. We didn't have a 4x4 during this time, but we managed to hitch-hike up and down the beach and hop on a few tours when they had spare seats. We loved spending our free time watching the wildlife around us and keeping an eye out for all the deadly creatures too :P
If you plan on visiting Fraser Island, this page will give you all the info you need plus some insider tips on secret spots to explore!
Visit the SS Maheno, a shipwreck about half way up the famous 75 mile on Fraser's east coast. It was washed ashore in 1935 by a cyclone, and has been slowly rusting away with the relentless forces from the south pacific ocean, be sure to check it out before its gone!
Go bird watching, the camp sites are frequently visited by many kookaburra's, most of them eyeing up the tour groups lunch's.. There are many different bird species on the island and a few eagles to spot if your lucky!
Go sand-boarding ✌ the island is full of sand blows, and some of them contain some insanely high dunes! Just remember to take some water with you or you'll end up like some of the dry sun bleached bones that scatter the empty dunes.
Look up. We ended lots of our nights down on the beach in the dark looking at the stars, here's a glimpse of what the sky looked like.. Of course you can never capture the true beauty of the night sky, it has to been seen with your own eyes! I can only imagine how amazing it would be during the time of year when the Milky Way is visible...
Spot the Fraser Island Dingo! Interesting fact - Its genetically unique because of its isolation from the mainland. But the sad fact is that increased tourism is also increasing the death rate for these endangered dogs, if you do see one, try your hardest to keep your distance and not to feed them.
Go surfing! Despite what they say, you can actually swim in the waters, just be sure not to go out too far... Yes there are sharks commonly spotted in these waters but they have no reason to come into the rough shallows and for that same reason the jellyfish are usually not on the east side of the island either. Just keep your wits about you, and have fun!
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Take a scenic flight! Air Fraser run a daily service that picks people up along the beach and gives them a 15 min flight over the island for around $80, if you've never been on a plane this small before then its worth it just for that!
Relax at Lake Mckenzie, arguable Fraser Islands best lake, and for good reason! The waters are crystal clear and the sand is silica white.
Get a wild fish pedicure at lake Wabby! This lake is only accessible via a 20/30 minute walk, but once you get out onto the sand dunes where the lake is located the views will blow you away! The dark emerald green lake is home to some quite big catfish and loads of little fish that will come over and eat up your dead skin if you sit still.
Spot some monitor lizards! Or as Australians call them, 'goannas'. These guys live all around the camp sites, you can easily spot 3/4 a day!! For people not used to them they are fascinating, but to the locals they are pests.
Explore the beautiful west coast of Fraser, there are no waves and no endless stream of vans driving on the beach.. It's about an hour drive through rough terrain and soft sand to get across the the other side, but if you manage it, its really worth the drive!
Spot a python! If your camping on the island you might be lucky enough to spot one, this dude was sat on a picnic bench for days just chilling.
Drive the 75 mile beach, the extremely popular drive up and down the which is often refered to as a highway because of the number of cars driving on it gives people a chance to stop at some amazing spots and also test their off-roading skills on the sand!
Read more about our time on Fraser or check out some more awesome photography!
Getting to Fraser Island
From Hervey Bay:
- You can hop on the the Kingfisher Bay ferry, return tickets cost $58 on foot or $175 for a vehicle. Try hitching a ride at the ferry terminal in a car with spare seats, or gather a group of friends and a car to lower the cost of the ticket.
- Feeling luxurious? Check out Air Fraser, a small family run air charter service that will take you on a breath-taking flight over the island and land you on the beach! Prices start at $150.
From Rainbow Beach:
- Gather some friends, hire a 4x4 from one of the many local hire companies and hop on the Manta Ray Barge which leaves from Inskip point every 30 minutes from 6am till 5.15pm. Return tickets are $120 for a car and this based on the car, not the amount of people inside it!
- Hitch-hike your way onto the island, this is a great way to see the island and pay nothing! Just be sure to grab a dingo stick while your exploring the island (just incase).
- Hop on one of the many tour groups that explore the many highlights of the island over 2/3 days! Depending on what your style is there are different tours for everyone, Pippies and RBAC host crazy drunken nights (just remember to respect the island) and company's like Drop Bear and Cool Dingo have a more relaxed vibe.
Thanks for reading!
Taran here, one half of NomaderHowFar. I'm fond of psychedelic rock, photography & videography, forcing Hannah to do crazy things, and I'm also partial to the odd gaming session. Oh and I love to travel :P Get to know us here!
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Waking Up With Kangaroos!
Rousing ourselves sleepily at 5am, we crawled out the tent, and took the short hop over a fence and..
Waking Up With Kangaroos!
Australian sunrises and sunsets, have a particular serene beauty about them, something peaceful, warm and calm. Australia also has a shit-ton of kangaroos hopping around. When you combine the two, its pretty spectacular.
We stopped at Cape Hillsborough (an hour south from Airlie beach) to see the scene for ourselves; wallabies and roo's gather on the beach at sunrise, get their morning munch on, and just generally pose for the cameras.
Rousing ourselves sleepily at 5am, we crawled out the tent, and took the short hop over a fence down to the beach. A small crowd of equally sleepy people had gathered, like some kind of zombie hord, all stood around staring. Then a man walked down the beach headed straight for the shoreline, and the roo's and wallabies came to life, hopping a great speed towards the man. Turns out he was dropping out some feed for them. Ah, so that's why they all hang out at this beach for breaky!
It was so funny to watch the roo's and wallabies interacting, the roo's often shoving the little wallabies out the way, claiming their food pile. The wallabies didn't dare fight back with their bigger cousins, who's claws can gut a man at record speed.
Gathering with our camera's, a couple of the roo's finished eating and started to inspect the captive audience. One hopped straight over to a young boy who was sat staring at his ipad on a towel (no idea why) much to the kid's shock. It was such a classic moment, seeing this roo demand the attention of the only person not snapping photo's.
This particular roo is the star of the tourist guide for the local region, so its no wonder he felt worthy of all the eyes and lenses.
Quietly sitting, not at all nervous, the roo allowed everyone to observe it. Breaking away from the crowd, they moved to the edge of the beach, where only a few determined photographers remained and had some one-on-one sessions.
Taran got some great photo's, as did I; the sunrise provides a stunning backdrop for a kangaroo silhouette!
If your interested in reading more about Australian wildlife, check out this extensive post by our pals Travelling Weasels: How to Find Australian Animals (and how to avoid the nasty ones)
Thanks for reading!
Hannah and Taran here. We hail from Southern England, where we met online and are now realizing our mutual passion for travel here at NomaderHowFar. We discuss Nomadic Living, Simplifying your Life and Long-term Travel, to empower, motivate and inspire our readers. Get to know us here!
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![Beauty Of Whitehaven [Photography]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/535a8b5ee4b00a1a8a7975e6/1463710245921-SQIECQ2KDV2QQIZHZA27/IMG_0311.JPG)
Beauty Of Whitehaven [Photography]
2 days was enough for the island to show its beauty, but left us wanting more!
Beauty Of Whitehaven - Photography
We only had a short stay on Whitehaven Beach, 2 nights camping a few feet off the actual beach, but this was enough time to see the beauty that it had to offer!
Above is one end of the beach, and also where we camped ✌ We spotted stingrays and hundreds of fish while snorkelling around those rocks!
This was one of the only objects escaping the tree line, the beach was incredibly pure and clean.
No words can put into detail just how clear the water was here... So just look at that picture again :)
Wondering down the beach on the first evening I came across a small shrub attempting to rise from the white silica sands..
Something about this photo really grabs me, and I'm still not sure what it is.. But that is Hannah down in the water while one of the many tour boats stopped briefly at the beach.
Just after sunset on our second evening the sky turned an awesome salmon pink, the silhouette of the tree made an awesome picture so I just had to snap it!
Read more about our time on Whitehaven or check out some more awesome photography!
Which is your favourite photo?!
Let me know in the comments below :D
Thanks for reading!
Taran here, one half of NomaderHowFar. I'm fond of psychedelic rock, photography & videography, forcing Hannah to do crazy things, and I'm also partial to the odd gaming session. Oh and I love to travel :P Get to know us here!
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6 Months of Travel In 6 Stunning Photo's
These 6 photos show the awesome diverse range of landscapes in Australia, check em' out!
6 Months of Travel In 6 Stunning Photo's
March 26th, it all began in Melbourne. City life was all we knew of Australia for the first fortnight. By that time we were ready to see something a little different, and a little bit more special.
Port Stephens
...is a beautiful place that we had the pleasure of staying at for 10 days. Having broken away from the pace of Sydney and Newcastle, we camped beside a kangaroo at an awesome bush hostel, and spent an evening on the deserted beach, which was when the above sky happened. Some nights later a brutal storm hit, causing a power-cut and widespread problems across New South Wales. We were trapped, although in no hurry to leave this quiet yet beautiful spot.
The Blue Mountains
...were our first taste of one of Australia's natural wonders, and they did not disappoint. Swathes of green as far as you could see, with peaks of mountains meeting the clouds. It was peaceful and unforgettable. Katoomba was also great, such a quintessential mountain town, with the Flying Fox hostel being our most favourite hostel in Australia yet.
Bellingen
...was somewhere we were recommended by the hostel owners at Port Stephens. A small but lively bohemian town, situated on the edge of the Waterfall Way, this place was breathtakingly beautiful and yet a fairly well-kept secret. It's national park-land had lots of waterfalls nestled amongst it's hilly rainforests. It did rain a lot in Bellingen, but we will always remember it fondly; we met some great people and experienced a truly eclectic hostel.
1770
...is a super small beach community, but attracts a large crowd for its gentle crystal waters, perfect for fishing or dolphin-spotting. We camped at a great site, right on the edge of the sand, and took some of our best photographs with our go-pro. Travelling with our Brisbanite mate Rachel, she brought us on a mini-road-trip that allowed us to see this special spot.
Macadamia farming
At the end of July we settled on our WWOOFing location in Queensland, working towards a 2nd year visa whilst getting to experience rural Australia. Kangaroo's outside your window each morning, utter peace and quiet (apart from the cockatoos), and working amongst the trees, it's been different to the rest of our travels, but really rewarding at the same time.
Rainbow beach
...was a Saturday escape from the farm, where we could let our hair down, and paddle in the warm spring seas. Turquoise waters, sand dunes leading up to stunning panoramic views, and all followed up by a cider and fish and chips; we had such a fun day here. We also visited Tin Can Bay which is just down the road, where we fed wild dolphins their breakfast!
We've had plenty of moments in the past 6 months where we've stopped, taken a deep breath, and stared in silence (and that's not just in the middle of an argument).
Beautiful has been the most over-used word to date on this blog, but we really have seen some stunning sights, taking them in patiently, trying to capture each and every detail in our memories. 6 months doesn't seem a long time; it really it feels like we've only just found our stride, and yet we've been amazed time and time again.
Thanks for reading!
Taran here, one half of NomaderHowFar. I'm fond of psychedelic rock, photography & videography, forcing Hannah to do crazy things, and I'm also partial to the odd gaming session. Oh and I love to travel :P Get to know us here!
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Capturing Incredible Photographs On A Gopro - How To
The thing that has allowed us to share our adventure through some amazing pictures and videos is our beloved GoPro Hero 4 Silver.
Capturing Incredible Photographs On A Gopro - How To
The thing that has allowed me to share my adventure through some amazing pictures and videos is my beloved little GoPro Hero 4 silver.
That, and a tripod. I use a GorillaPod as it allows me to place the camera almost anywhere! It can be attached to the side of trees, placed on uneven rocks or even hold itself upside down if needed.
This photo was taken at a beach just after sunset down by the waters edge, using long exposure and low ISO settings.
A few things to understand for anyone who isn't sure:
- The ISO settings will allow you to control how sensitive your camera is to light. Basically the lower the number the less sensitive to light your camera is.
- The Exposure time will allow you to set how long your camera lets in light for, so for instance, photos of the stars and the Milky Way will need lots of light and normally require exposure times of around 30 seconds.
To take an awe-inspiring photo like our one above you will want to set your GoPro (or other suitable camera) on your mount at the water's edge and apply the following settings..
Exposure time: 30 seconds
ISO level: 100
White balance: Native
- You will only have a short window of time to take the pictures (about 10-15 mins) so make sure you are ready!
- Make sure you take a few pictures during the sunset while the light is fading. If the pictures come out too light just wait a few more minutes for it to get a tad darker.
- Import them onto your computer and apply a Black and White filter to add some impact and drama to your snaps!
When it comes to taking pictures of the Milky Way, things can be a little bit harder..
For starters you will need to be somewhere with low light pollution otherwise you will just pick up all the light from surrounding cities in your picture. LightPollutionMap is a great website that allows you to find areas with low light pollution, once you have found your spot and it's not a cloudy night, set your camera up on its tripod and use the following settings:
Exposure time: 30 seconds (or above if possible)
ISO level: 800
White balance: Native
- Point the GoPro in the direction of the Milky Way. It has a very wide field of view with its fisheye lens so there is little chance that you will miss things as long as you point the camera in the general direction!
- After importing to your computer you will want to play around with the photo for a while on a editing program, increasing the contrast and altering the saturation will bring out the colours of the milky way and really give it some omph!
- From what I have found the photo's come out better if you allow some foreground objects into the picture as well, a few trees will do the trick.
Ready for some more advanced tips? Check out this new updated article:
Wanna know how to take EPIC photographs?! Check out our short master-class :D https://t.co/hnrcpxCttB pic.twitter.com/GIUbpbpFX7
— Nomad'er How Far (@Nomaderhowfar) April 2, 2016
Now lets see what the video side of a GoPro can do! Here's what ours has seen while in Australia:
These are photo's I will always treasure, and always look back on in disbelief that I was able to take them. With a little practice and time, you too can be your own master of your camera, and creator of a stunning collection of photographic moments.
Thanks for reading!
Taran here, owner of Nomad'er How Far. I'm fond of psychedelic rock, photography & videography, anything to do with space and I'm also partial to the odd gaming session. Oh and I love to travel :P Get to know me here!
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Taran & Makoto here, together we form Nomader How Far photography.
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